Share this with

Canadian dad-of-three Tyson Leavitt is living the dream making other people’s (mostly kids’) dreams come true.

Last year, he took his ‘stupid idea’ to build luxury over-the-top treehouses and playhouses for children and turned it into a thriving business – called Charmed Playhouses.

Let’s face it, setting up a company selling lavish miniature castles, planes and Hobbit holes – drawn straight out of children’s imaginations – in the middle of a recession, does sound like a recipe for disaster.

But, somehow, it worked. After starting with three employees, Tyson now manages 15 members of staff out of his HQ in Alberta.

‘We believe that every child deserves a place to play and let their imagination run wild,’ reads the Charmed Playhouse philosophy. ‘From slaying dragons to hosting lavish tea parties, every child needs a space to have some fun.’

Tyson told Buzzfeed Canada he decided to start the business after working as a landscaper for eight years. ‘One thing that I noticed is that in all these yards there were never really spaces that kids could go and enjoy,’ he said.

Advertisement

Advertisement

‘Even if a family’s backyard had a rickety swing set, it was shoddily made and usually clashed with the rest of the yard and house.’

So, he offers top-end playhouses, treehouses and dog houses to elevate any back garden. So good, you’ll want to move into.

They will, of course, cost. ‘We have playhouses that are $7,000 (£4,969) and we have playhouses that are over $100,000 (£71,000),’ Tyson explains. ‘It’s not up to us. The ideas come from our clients.’

And, because they’re in the business of making dreams come true, Charmed Playhouses has also worked with the Make A Wish foundation. They made a super-sweet pink doughnut shop for one little girl called Mallory.